MS Dhoni vs Adam Gilchrist: Who is the Best Wicketkeeper-Batsman?

SportsBoom is always pushing forward the debate, and this time, we’ve shone a light on who the best wicketkeeper-batsman is: MS Dhoni or Adam Gilchrist? Don’t go anywhere as we will rummage through the stats across all formats, including Test cricket. We have scored them across a series of key performance metrics to see who comes out on top.

Methodology Behind MS Dhoni vs Adam Gilchrist Comparison

Let’s make one thing clear. We have been very purposeful with our intentions in trying to draw comparisons between MS Dhoni and Adam Gilchrist and highlighting their effectiveness as wicketkeeper-batsmen.

Yes, there were four important factors used to illustrate how productive they were in their roles. Firstly, we looked at the batting averages of both players as this is a crucial measure of how each performed in various formats. The best cricketer in the history of the game aka Sir Donald Bradman boasted an average of 99.94 in Test cricket which is simply outstanding. However, it is worth noting that Test is the most difficult version of the games, so the averages for ODI and T20s are often higher.

From there, we also explored the strike rate which demonstrates how often players connected bat with ball. Dhoni, for example, is one of the best ODI batsmen in the world, but Gilchrist had a ridiculous SR of 96.94, so SR is a good gauge of how aggressive these batsmen were.

Centuries, unsurprisingly, were considered. While there are players who scored centuries in all formats, Dhoni and Gilchrist were both prolific run scorers, racking up plenty of tons in their respective careers. Grabbing a century, which can often be a match-winning contribution, is an important yardstick, hence why we have included it in our following table.

The final element of the scoring methodology used was half-centuries scored by Dhoni and Gilchrist. Getting to 50 is still a significant milestone, and it underlines the consistency of a batsman. A point was scored across each of the categories and we added the scores up to provide an overall total.

Scoring Methodology – Breakdown of MS Dhoni vs Adam Gilchrist Stats

Now that the stats are in, let’s revisit the scoring methodology we applied to carry out our comparison between Dhoni and Gilchrist. Starting with batting average, Dhoni shaded this category as he averaged just shy of 45 while Gilchrist was just shy of 39. Perhaps the fact Dhoni played 98 T20 matches compared to Gilchrist’s 13 may skew things, but batting average measure consistency, and Dhoni goes 1-0 up here.

Now on to the strike rate. While Dhoni was no slouch as he had an SR of 79.07, Gilchrist carved out a reputation for using brute force with the bat, and he was always quick out of the blocks. His 91.43 SR is excellent, and Gilchrist has levelled things up at 1-1.

Centuries always throw up fascinating comparisons between the best players. Gilchrist, who was inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame in 2013, was renowned for scoring centuries at record quick pace. For example, Gilchrist recorded one of the fastest centuries in Test cricket off just 57 balls for Australia against England. The Ashes, of course, remains one of cricket’s greatest rivalries, demonstrating Gilchrist’s ability to rise to the big occasion.

Gilchrist compiled 33 centuries in international cricket, which is just more than double Dhoni’s tally (16), so Gilchrist leads 2-1.

Half-centuries have their worth too. Dhoni and Gilchrist compiled plenty of half-centuries between them, but Dhoni scored 27 more than his Australian counterpart, so Dhoni comfortably won this category. Once we added up of the totals, we realised nothing split Dhoni and Gilchrist (2-2), so we’ve declared this a tie.